Posted on 03/12/2026 4:29:25 PM PDT by moviefan8
Washington — An Iranian vessel sailed too close to the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, and the U.S. fired at the vessel, according to two U.S. officials briefed on the matter who spoke to CBS News under condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
The officials said a U.S. Navy vessel attempted to fire on the Iranian vessel using its 5-inch, 54-caliber Marck-45 gun, a fully automated naval cannon that is mounted to the forward deck of Navy destroyers and cruisers and has served as the fleet's standard deck gun since the early 1970s.
While it's not known which naval vessel fired on the Iranian ship, the officials said it missed multiple times.
The status of the Iranian ship and its crew is not known. The incident occurred earlier this week.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
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The Iranian coast has needed to be a ship/boat free zone for >40 years.
Just like the mining and ship strikes I bet. The news comes late and at a time when the liberal media feels it will cause the most pain and frustration.
Time to get some Phalanx practice.
I know its an anti-missile defense weapon, but a guy can dream.
While it's not known which naval vessel fired on the Iranian ship, the officials said it missed multiple times.
I'm guessing this "official" was a junior sailor with cell phone footage to peddle.
“...it missed multiple times.”
I find that humerus. If they wanted it, they could have easily harvested it.
wy69
R2D2 has had enough Iran BS
Why would they intentionally miss when it’s the stated aim to destroy the entire Iranian navy?
That's what has me wondering. Could it have been a fishing vessel they warned off? I find it hard to believe they would have missed if they had wanted to sink it.
I am surprised they haven’t sunk every ship Iran owns private or otherwise
I read the article, and this article reeks to me of a typical media outlet story where the writers know nothing about military or naval operations.
First off, it does not say what kind of rules of engagement the ships were in at the time. It does note that the nature of the Iranian vessel was unknown.
A lot of these things need to be known because it is pretty easy to imagine that it is entirely possible for the ship that was “missing” its target may have well been firing warning shots, not intended to hit the target. Enable apartments, and everybody knows this… That is known as a “shot across the
A warning shot like that is almost always proceeded by a radio message to the vessel telling them to either “heave to” (stop their engine and make no headway) or to identify themselves and stay clear.
The fact at an aircraft carrier allowed a small unidentified vessel to get close enough for escorts to fire rounds over their bow indicates to me that the rules of engagement at that time were probably pretty strict with respect to unknown surface craft. I’m pretty certain that the last thing the US Navy or America wants to do at a time like that (depending on when it actually took place.) is to sink without warning, a fishing boat from one of the many Arab countries in the area who are not combatants.
Just food for thought.
Admiral Lee would not be happy . Perhaps the crew can watch this video as a motivation to improve their gunnery skills.

Rear Admiral Willis Augustus Lee Jr.
So why couldn’t inform us of how close the Iranian ship was to the Lincoln? Boats and ships should keep their distance.
Reminds me of what my supervisor in the Air Force said when talking about the NCO Club on base: “You won’t catch me within a mile of the place on Soul Night”.
I fully expect that this is a Rules of Engagement (ROE) related issue where the escorts were not trying to sink the vessel.
Let’s think about it… That is one of the most heavily traveled seas in the world by all kinds of countries… I suspect the rules of engagement are very strict.
The press often gets things wrong with military actions, when you throw in rampant TDS it becomes a near miracle to get an accurate story.
Tell that to the survivors of the USS Cole.
I am a huge fan of Admiral “Ching” Lee.” He was a real stud and a down to earth officer.
History has not given him enough credit.
What does this even mean, "atempted to fire"?
The raghead boat should be at on the bottom and her crew fish food right now.
What the hell?
“Marck-45”
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